BY INALEGWU SHAIBU

HAVING lost some time following the six-week recess they embarked upon recently, senators have been saddled with tough hurdles they must surmount in the coming months.

The hurdles were set by no less a person than Senate President David Mark.

Sounding business-like, Mark, who was coming out fresh from a six_week recess after the rigours of constituting the leadership of the Seventh Senate unveiled what could be termed a legislative road map for the lawmakers.

Mark began by felicitating the returning senators and highlighting some recent achievements of the Senate, which include setting up the cabinet for President Goodluck Jonathan and its effort to help government tackle the problems of insecurity in the country.

Thereafter, he went into the legislative agenda, which include: review of the 1999 constitution, review of revenue allocation, improving on the security crisis plaguing the nation and consideration of bills resuscitated from the Sixth Senate.

He said: “As you are all aware, we did what we could to assist the Government take off before we went on recess. Forty_two ministerial nominees were diligently screened in this hallowed chamber in line with our constitutional duty. Out of these, 41 nominees were confirmed as Ministers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“My dear colleagues, now that we are back, there is no doubt that we have great legislative challenges to face and the high expectations of our countrymen and women to meet. Let me note that constitution amendment remains one of the top priorities of the Seventh Senate.

The onus is therefore on us to build on this success. Nigerians expect us to revisit some fundamental issues such as state creation, the Local Government system, devolution of powers, revenue allocation, State Police, State INEC, uniform minimum wage, joint account and other contentious but important issues.”

The Senate President was also mindful of the wave of insecurity in the country. He expressed concerns over the atrocious acts of the Boko Haram sect, the orgies of killings in Jos, Plateau and the floods in Lagos and Ibadan that have added to the high death tolls.

Agenda setting over, Mark assured Nigerians that the Senate will move with the speed of light to address the items listed, promising that it would not be business as usual.

With the laudable template and the assurances from the Senate President, the question on the lips of observers is, is the template achievable?

The ability of the Senate to tinker with the constitution is not in doubt given the fact that the Sixth Senate under the leadership of Mark succeeded in carrying out two amendment exercises.

However, the first amendment was largely successful because the National Assembly with foresight navigated the whole exercise way from the murky waters of controversies.

Such controversial issues like state creation, fiscal federalism, devolution of powers and state police that were absent in the first amendment are now the fulcrum of the proposed amendment.

Mark had already set to the tone that it may not be plain sailing unlike the previous amendment with these rhetorical questions.

He asked: “Should we allow State Police? Will it enhance policing duties and reduce criminality in the country? Is the current revenue formula equitable? Will a change in favour of the states enhance the deliverables to the people? Should power distribution be on the Exclusive Legislative List? Shouldn’t states that invest in power generation be allowed to distribute? Is it necessary to create new states?

Will it bring government nearer to the people and address cries of marginalisation? How effective are the local governments? Should they be made to function independently of the States? Is the Joint State/Local Governments account still necessary?”

Answers to these questions would of course come from Nigerians when the exercise takes off.

However, Senate Leader, Victor Ndoma_Egba noted that the current amendment exercise would be tedious and more contentious because of the items in the constitution that need to the amended.

He said: “State creation is a volatile issue. When a proposal is voiced regarding constitution amendment the voicing of that proposal does not mean it has passed. Constitutional amendment is a process, that process begins with the National Assembly we are going to subject every proposal to public hearing.

“Every proposed amendment has to be approved by two_third of state houses of assembly. Now the implication of that requirement for two_third of the state assembly to approve means that for any proposed amendment to pass through, you would have built a national consensus on that issue and for you to build a national consensus, you must have had very extensive national conversation on that subject.

“If there is no consensus, the proposal will definitely fail. The consensus will include how many new states to be created and what criteria to use. It is left for Nigerians to decide. It is not something in my view that is going to be automatic. I do know that my personal view is that building that consensus around the issue of state creation is going to be tedious.”

Legislative framework

On the issue of security, Mark said that the Senate would provide the legislative frame work needed to combat terrorism, despite passing the Terrorism Prevention Act.

He assured Nigerians thus, “permit me to note, albeit most sadly, that in the past few months, our dear nation has come under grievous attacks by forces of darkness and agents of insecurity and destabilization. Innocent lives have been mindlessly wasted and properties wantonly destroyed through bomb explosions and related acts of violence. We must address the issue of insecurity squarely, head on once and for all.

He continued: “Dear colleagues, while we appeal to all Nigerians to recourse to dialogue and democratic modes of ventilating feelings and pursuing legitimate courses, permit me to emphasize that we cannot allow the people we represent to continue to live in fear. What the times call for is greater collaboration, not only between the Senate and the security agencies, but also between our constituents and us. When evil men conspire, all good men must congregate.

“The bombers and their sponsors live amongst us. Therefore our constituents should spare nothing in assisting to find a lasting solution to this national embarrassment. I urge the Federal Government to take decisive steps to stem this ugly tide. It must rise to emphatically make this land most infertile for all sponsors and peddlers of terrorism and anarchy. And in doing this, there must be no sacred cows.”

The expectation is that the Senate will go beyond legislation and lip services and hold close door meetings with security chiefs on the matter.